About Paralogisms: Some Ideas to Keep in Mind

Abstract

This paper has two aims. (1) To show the singularity of Vaz Ferreira’s idea of paralogisms inside the fallacy tradition, due not only to his “psycho-logic” frame of approach, but to his conception of the paralogism as a process or state of confusion and a source of mistakes that are mental and cognitive rather than discursive. (2) To translate this idea to the present-day field of argumentation so as to take advantage of Vaz’s power of suggestion. For his contribution is not confined to the lucid exploration and illustration of the paralogism as a dimension of fallacies barely noticed before him, but also abounds with suggestions worth taking into account in our current discussions about fallacious argumentation.